So, I understand why feeding cats wet or raw food makes sense. But I don't understand the people saying dry food is basically "poison" to cats.
I've had 3 cats pass away in my life so far, all between 22 and 24 years old, who have all eaten dry food. I know of at least a dozen more from friends and family who have also had very old cats who only are dry food.
In my family, we take our pets to the vet regularly, and they have never had anything worse than an upper respiratory infection. No UTI, no dehydration, good stools, amazing coats, and lots of energy up until their last few days.
I don't even?
I'm 25 and have been smoking since I was 12 but I don't have lung cancer yet.
>I don't even!???!!!!
You talk like a faggot.
People have lived into their hundreds smoking and drinking every other day. Anecdotal evidence, whether what you're saying is actually true or not, doesn't mean shit.
>>2114536
That's not an even comparison...
>>2114540
Yes, it is. Saying that dry food isn't bad for your cats because they lived to 20 is the same as saying cigarettes aren't bad because people live to 100 smoking them.
>>2114540
He is giving an example of "anecdotal evidence".
A better one might be "my grandma ate a Big Mac every day of her adult life and lived to be 95!!!!". Does the fact one single grandma lived a long time eating McD'S prove it is good for you? Under your logic, you would be saying it is.
The simple facts are that a good wet food has a water percentage closer to what cats would get in prey they hunt in the wild, and the lower, if non existent, carbs help keep the cats at a proper weight. I am glad kibble has worked out for your cats, but speaking in general, it isn't the case.
>>2114538
It's not all that bad apparently. With drinking or smoking you can live a long time but doctors will tell you your lungs or liver are bad, smoking will make you cough, etc. Taking our cats to the vet every year, they had zero symptoms of what dry cat food can do, near the end.
Yes, it's anecdotal, but apparently we've been doing something right, it seems.
Currently my cats eat at least 80% wet food. I've noticed zero difference in their coat, their litterboxes, or energy, and it's been 2 years since I've started the wet food. And everything is the same as our previous cats in terms of health. But I do want what's best for them, so I'm sticking with wet since it's highly encouraged.
Personally, I do believe wet/raw should be fed, and most cat owners should do it. But for many, many owners who have had healthy, long-lived cats on dry food, what is the explanation?
I am also actually a faggot, good catch.
>>2114557
That makes much more sense than the cigarette answer.
I get what all of you are saying. I'm not angry about the dry vs wet thing, I am just really curious how dry food diets can work perfectly fine for some cats but not others. If I had success with only one cat on dry, I wouldn't think about it. But having and knowing about so many others just made me wonder if the dry food "scare" is just overblown.
>>2114560
The Big Mac example works well here again. Maybe your grandma, great uncle, friend's grandpa, and your coworker's great grandma also lived to an old age eating Big Macs every day. Now, can you say the "scare" around fast food is overblown?
This speaks in big generalities. Wet good is generally bettwr. If you take great care of your cats and give them kibble, then odds say they'll live good lifes, just like how if you had a Big Mac every day, but ran 3 miles everyday and lifted weights, you'd be fine. Obviously having the best diet possible helps to ensure longevity, but there are things you can do to help balance out a less than ideal diet. A high quality wet food is the best thing you can give a cat... but it doesn't mean your cat is going to die a short life if you give it kibble but otherwise take good care of it.
Feeding dry food isn't the WORST thing you can do. The oldest cat in the world, Creme Puff, was fed "bacon and eggs, asparagus, broccoli, and coffee with heavy cream" Anyone with half a brain can tell you that it's unhealthy, but the cat still lived to be 38 years old
>>2114558
Just because it isn't evident doesn't mean there aren't health benefits or they aren't healthier. Lots of people don't see any difference so they switch back to their dry food, so I'm glad you are still feeding them wet
My cat lived 12 years on dry food but I'm in the process of getting him used to wet food and I've stopped free feeding. Always had a clean bill of health and has never had any problems, and still acts like a kitten but I've still decided to change his diet since I know it's healthier and just because he hasn't had any problems yet doesn't mean he won't in the future. He doesn't like other animals and he has about a decade left in his life, but when I get a new cat I'm going to start it out on a raw food diet. My current cat is familiar with wet food and he still isn't taking it too well, so I doubt he'd take to a raw diet easily
>>2114560
Different genes. Same reason why one person can sit on their ass all day and be unathletic and still be healthy with an attractive body, and another person can exercise regularly and be very physically fit and still be overweight and unhealthy. Different cats have different needs
>>2114571
Ok, that makes sense. Thanks for answering and being nice about it.
One more thing I'm curious about: wet food ingredients. I've read a lot of things about how you should avoid wet food with ingredients like starches, normal potatoes, and all vegetables and fruits. So are those actually terrible for your cat, too? Or do the vitamins and antioxidants actually benefit the cat as they're supposed to?
I do avoid normal potatoes and carrageenan, at least. The wet foods I usually get have different berries and a few veggies, though.
>>2114574
Thanks for the response. I made this thread with mixed feelings. I know wet/raw is ideal for cats, and I feel bad I've fed my previous cats dry. But at the same time, I thought with the high-quality dry foods out there, wet/raw wouldn't be necessary. Like Acana and Orijen. I hope that company will make canned food soon.
But yeah, I'm keeping my cats on wet, and I'll be giving them only wet soon. I've just been struggling with shopping for a brand of cat food I can stick with, between having a picky cat and giving them one of the best foods I can.
>>2114581
Kinda. The food I feed my cats, Weruva Paw Lickin' Chicken, I consider to be of massively high quality, but it has potato starch. This is where the make up and macros begin to matter. This food is like 65% protein, 32% fat, and 3% carbs. Avoid? I don't think so. But it should be a flag you look at. Sometimes, like in my food, it is just added for shelf life or stability, but the vast amount of the food is moisture and meat. As per stuff like sweet potatoes or blueberries.... I doubt it will hurt them, but I also question how much it will help.
The ultimate reality is cats are obligate carnivores. They are made to get EVERYTHING they need from meat. Anything else is filler... there to bulk the food out or for shelf stability. A super good cat food has meat, vitamins, and as little filler as possible.
Can any of you recommend a wet cat food that costs around 15-20 cents per ounce? (About $1 for a 5.5 oz can or $2.30 for a 12 ounce)
>>2115014
Check what's on sale desu. If there's a decent wet food on sale, I'll buy out the shelf.
>>2115024
Is it okay to switch them on and off different foods that often depending on what's on sale?
Also are there any good websites for buying pet food online?
>>2115039
It probably depends on your cats. My boys are from a shelter so they're not fussy, I can switch them between different foods and litters with no issues. You can probably circumvent this by buying a shitload when the food you want is on sale.
I have a few sites I regularly look through, but I live in Australia so I'm not sure how helpful linking them would be. Try Googling for wet food sales, and note the more reputable ones.
>>2115072
Will do. Thanks for the advice, anon.
Does anyone else use "I and Love and You"? My cats really like the turkey and rabbit flavors and I like the ingredients . the cats are doing well . they just are eating the wet food
I emailed the company about making a venison flavor because the cats love venison, they responded and said they like getting flavor requests and will consider it
>>2114533
>I think its bullshit marketing.
Since we are on this topic. What do you think of feeding your cat completely raw food? Or boiled, w/e just pure Meat like fish(tho cats did not evolve to eat fish), chicken and beef . How can you get your cat started on this diet?
Also, in Regards to wet food: Do you heat it up in any way?
In Regards to dry food: it helps keep the strength of their teeth, true or false? Is it worth it?
Ps. Tip from the vet. Cats dont handle protein well and it burns through their kidneys, so for long lived cats, dry is better.
>my cat is so old I have to take dry food and solve it in boiling water, let it cool and absorb, making it somekind of weird spoup, to introduce varity to her diet along with the wet food we also feeding her.
>>2117938
>What do you think of feeding your cat completely raw food?
As in a store-bought raw diet? Great if you can afford it, but it is fucking expensive. Even more expensive than all canned. Some people mitigate the cost by alternating between raw and canned.
>Do you heat it up in any way?
If it is cold I'll take the chill off of it.
>In Regards to dry food: it helps keep the strength of their teeth
Big ol' meme. Completely false. Most cats do not chew it long enough for it to provide any benefits to their teeth.
>Cats dont handle protein well and it burns through their kidneys, so for long lived cats, dry is better.
Or low protein wet food. My old boy as kidney disease, so he and her adopted sister get a special low-protein canned food from the vet.
>>2115596
Hey... just look the eye from the other dude in the left... What will he be thinking?
>>2117938
What??? Where on earth did you hear that BS about cats "not handling protein well"?? That is completely false. A cat's natural diet is meat, meat, meat, and more meat.
>>2114556
Well, you see, anon, you fucked up there, because you used young example.
>>2117998
My vet said it to me. You dont have to be built to last, just built to spread your genes.
>>2115014
Weruva's BFF line runs about that price
